MoU signed to develop high-speed rail in North-East Europe

Representatives from RB Rail AS, CPK and SZCZ sign the MoU.

The Rail Baltica central project coordinator and joint venture RB Rail AS, Centralny Port Komunikacyjny Sp. z o.o. (CPK) and Správa železnic, státní organizace (SZCZ), the national railway infrastructure manager in the Czech Republic, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to lay out the cooperation principles and further steps in strengthening cooperation for the development of high-speed rail in the region.

Through this tripartite agreement, the parties have formalised commitment to cooperate in order to promote and develop high-speed railway projects within the respective countries and cross-borderly, ensuring further knowledge and experience sharing in the different areas of high-speed development, e.g., traffic forecasting and traffic modelling, identification of new opportunities, joint planning timelines and alignment on implementation of preparatory works, investment models as well as planning and organising common actions to promote high-speed railway at the EU and international level.

“Considering the scale and impact of the Rail Baltica Global project not only in the Baltic States, but also the whole Europe, we must recognise benefits and use the full potential from strengthening cooperation with other megaprojects,” explained Agnis Driksna, CEO and Chairperson of the Management Board at RB Rail AS. “Not only we can learn from each other, but through this cooperation we can together enhance better solutions for mobility, connectivity, business development, and economic growth in North-East and Central Europe by delivering sustainable, interoperable and resilient transport infrastructure that corresponds to the European Green Deal goals and Sustainable and Smart Mobility strategy priorities of EU. We have already made significant progress by establishing regular cooperation formats with CPK, and will be honoured to now extend the cooperation also with the national railway infrastructure manager in the Czech Republic.”

Mikołaj Wild, CEO of CPK, said: “This is the unique, one-of-a-kind time in our common history when, functioning together in the region, we can create an unrivaled rail transportation offering. We are drawing lessons from high-speed rail investments in the West. As a result, our projects can bring about an economic domino effect, giving a boost to other industries and sectors.”

Radek Čech, Director of the International Affairs Deptartment of SZCZ, said: “The cooperation between railway infrastructure project developers in the region is viewed by Správa železnic as a cornerstone for future rapid development in the 3Seas area. Faster travel between hubs, better service quality to passengers, improved safety as well as alleviating capacity on conventional rail for freight seem to be the major benefits that will boost economic growth and multi-lateral relationships across the region. Given the long-term nature of these projects we understand we must not miss this crucial momentum to invest now in the future, as the positive benefits will be enormous not only for our countries but also for the whole of Europe.”

Signing took place during the Railway Direction Days 2023 International Conference in Warsaw.